Independence Day (No, Not the Movie!)

Our review of Paul Magrs' The Scarlet Empress can be downloaded here.  We were tickled pink to hear that Mr. Magrs actually listened to our podcast and described us as "camp".  That's an in-joke that you may or may not get, but we'll just leave it at that.

For April of 2013 we go back to a traditional Seventh Doctor and Ace story (as opposed to the grumpy manipulative Doctor and the angst-ridden Ace we know from the Virgin New Adventures).  It's the BBC Past Doctor Adventure Independence Day by Peter Darvill-Evans.  From the back cover:

'Danger is my middle name,' Ace said, 'or it would be if I had more than one.  I can look after myself these days, you know.'

Freedom.  Liberty.  Free will.  Independence.  Choice.  Everyone wants to be free.  But at what point does freedom become irresponsibility?  What happens when one person's choice causes another's oppression?

The Doctor's on a simple mission to return a communications device he borrowed years previously.  Being a Time Lord, he can return it before anyone misses it.

But events in the Mendeb system have moved more quickly than the Doctor estimated, and he lands in the ruins of a civilisation devastated by mysterious invaders.

Darvill-Evans is arguably the single most important person in the history of Doctor Who novels.  In 1989, he oversaw the Target novelizations of the televised stories, and then went on to work for Virgin, where he created launched the New Adventures (he even wrote one himself, Deceit).  Aside from that book and Independence Day, he also wrote the BBC Past Doctors Adventure Asylum, featuring the Fourth Doctor and Nyssa.

Asylum, published in 2001, was the last thing Darvill-Evans published.  However, you can catch him on the DVD extra, "Doctor Forever! -- Love and War" on the recently-released special edition of "The Ark of Space".

Fun links:

"Independence Day" on the Doctor Who Ratings Guide

Peter Darvill-Evans' Wikipedia Entry

"Independence Day" on Amazon  (Hey, it's affordable!)

"Independence Day" at the Doctor Who Reference Guide  (Spoilers, sweetie)

Email us and tell us how much you love Erik's laugh at dwbcpodcast@gmail.com, look for us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter via @dwbcpodcast.  You can also follow Erik via @sjcaustenite and Sean via @tardistavern.

The Pit

To celebrate Halloween, 2012, we discuss the mind-blowing and arguably frightening Virgin New Adventure, The Pit by Neil Penswick.  From the back cover:

For two weeks now it has been the same message again and again, and it’s getting stranger; death and destruction, the end of all things, ARMAGEDDON.

In an attempt to lift the Doctor out of his irritable and erratic mood, Bernice suggests he investigates the mystery of the Seven Planets – an entire planetary system that disappeared without trace several decades before Bernice was born.

One of the Seven Planets is a nameless giant, quarantined against all intruders.  But when the TARDIS materializes, it becomes clear that the planet has other visitors: a hit-squad of killer androids; a trespassing scientist and his wife; and two shape-changing criminals with their team of slaves.

As riot and anarchy spread on the system’s colonized worlds, the Doctor is flung into another universe while Bernice closes in on the horror that is about to be unleashed – a horror that comes from a terrible secret in the Time Lords’ past.

If you’re wondering who Neil Penswick is, then you’re not alone; this novel was his single contribution to Doctor Who canon.  It was only after a little hunting that we were able to track down an interview with him (see the link on our blog page).  To the best of our knowledge, he’s currently working in an office, so when it all comes down to it he has one up on me, as I’ve never even tried to publish a novel.

Fun links:

"The Pit" on Amazon.  (Yep, it's cheap!)

A detailed synopsis at The Doctor Reference Guide.  (Spoilers, sweetie!)

The Doctor Who Ratings Guide regarding "The Pit".

An interview with Neil Penswick.  (Source unknown.)

Email us at dwbcpodcast@gmail.com, join us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter via @dwbcpodcast.  You can also follow Erik via @sjcaustenite and Sean via @tardistavern.

 

Winter in April: Cold Fusion

Our review of Gary Russell's Business Unusual is now available here.  Special thanks to our friend Charlie Paulson for providing last month's reading.

April brings us snowstorms, Adric, Nyssa, Tegan, the Fifth Doctor, and the Seventh Doctor in Lance Parkin's Cold Fusion, one of the later installments in Virgin's Missing Adventures series.  From the back cover:

'The entire universe is at stake and I'm locked in here with another incarnation of myself, and not even one of the good ones.'

More than one TARDIS lands on a barren ice world.  The fifth Doctor, Adric, Nyssa and Tegan find a once ordered society on the verge of collapse, as rebels wage a dirty war with Scientifica, the ruling elite.  All that stands between order and anarchy is the massed presence of an Adjudicator peacekeeping force.

But is peace the only reason for the Adjudicator garrison?  What exactly has been discovered deep beneath the planet's surface?  Who are the mysterious Ferutu?  And why is telling a ghost story a criminal offense?

The fifth Doctor sides with the cause of justice and fairness as always.  But, as a threat to the universe unfolds, he finds himself in conflict with his past...and his future.

For continuity buffs, this story takes place between the television stories "Castrovalva" and "Four to Doomsday" and between the New Adventures Return of the Living Dad and The Death of Art.  The back cover text seems to skirt around the fact that the Seventh Doctor and his friends are present in this story, but anything that is blatantly obvious by glancing at the front cover shouldn't be considered a spoiler.

We previously reviewed a Lance Parkin's The Infinity Doctors back in Episode 8.  It can't be argued that Parkin is an ambitious author, and hopefully Cold Fusion will not disappoint.  So sit back and enjoy!

Fun Links:

"Cold Fusion" on Amazon  (Wow, that's rich!)

Lance Parkin's Official Website

Lance Parkin's Wikipedia Page

"Cold Fusion" on the Doctor Who Reference Guide  (Spoilers, sweetie!)

For February: Love and War (at Gallifrey!)

Our latest episode, a review of Christopher Bulis' A Device of Death is now available for downloading.  As February rolls in and the time has come to read another Virgin New Adventure, Erik has chosen Paul Cornell's Love and War.  From the back cover:

On a planet called Heaven, all hell is breaking loose.

Heaven is a paradise for both humans and Draconians -- a place of rest in more ways than one.  The Doctor comes here on a trivial mission -- to find a book, or so he says -- and Ace, wandering alone in the city, becomes involved with a charismatic Traveller called Jan.

But the Doctor is strenuously opposed to the romance.  What is he trying to prevent?  Is he planning some more deadly game connected with the mysterious objects causing the military forces of Heaven such concern?

Archaeologist Bernice Summerfield thinks so.  Her destiny is inextricably linked with that of the Doctor, but even she may not be able to save Ace from the Time Lord's plans.

This time, has the Doctor gone too far?

Good old McCoy and his Machiavellian schemes.

This year marks the 20-year anniversary of Professor Benny Summerfield, possibly the most popular companion in Doctor Who's literary form.  She became so popular, in fact, that after publishing its last New Adventure featuring the Doctor, The Dying Days, Virgin released a series of novels featuring Benny as the lead character.  This eventually spawned a range of Big Finish audio adventures as well.  (Although, if that is indeed her on the cover, her fashion choices are a bit questionable.)

Nary a fan has never heard of Paul Cornell.  Although Love and War is one of his most popular books, he's probably best known for authoring the Virgin New Adventure Human Nature, which eventually became an installment in the fourth series of the television show with the Tenth Doctor.  Cornell has written nine New Adventures (four of which were for the Benny Summerfield range), one Missing Adventure, one Eighth Doctor novel, and a Past Doctor novel based on the BBC's animated short, Scream of the Shalka.

Episode 14 marks a special occasion, as Erik and Sean will be recording in person at Gallifrey One in February.  (Also, look forward to a tentative special guest...no, not Paul Cornell.)  If you are there and see us, don't be afraid to come up and say hello.  We really are a couple of splendid fellows.  Also join our page on Facebook, follow us on Twitter via @dwbcpodcast, or email us at dwbcpodcast@gmail.com (Erik personally answers each and every email while Sean shuns email like a red-headed stepchild).

Fun links:

Love and War at the Doctor Who Reference Guide  (Spoilers, sweetie!)

Paul Cornell's Blog

Love and War on Amazon  (Hey, it's affordable!)

For December: Atom Bomb Blues

If you still haven't listened to Erik & Sean's rousing discussion of Alien Bodies, you can download the episode here.

Before Sean switched on his randomizer to pick this month's selection from the proverbial hat, he had to think back about whether or not the BBC provided any past Doctor novels involving Christmas.  Answer: They didn't.  So, for December we present Atom Bomb Blues by Andrew Cartmel.  From the back cover:

Los Alamos, New Mexico, 1945.  The Second World War is coming to its bloody conclusion, and in the American desert the race is on to build an atomic bomb.

The fate of the world is at stake -- in more ways than one.  Someone, or something, is trying to alter the course of history at this most delicate point.  And destroy the human race.  Posing as a nuclear scientist with Ace as his research assistant, the Doctor plays detective among the Manhattan Project scientists, while desperately trying to avoid falling under suspicion himself.

As the minutes tick away to the world's first atom bomb blast, the Doctor and Ace find themselves up to their necks in spies, aliens of the flying-saucer variety, and some very nasty saboteurs from another dimension...

Published in November, 2005, this novel is the final installment of the BBC's Past Doctor Adventures.  They had already begun releasing the New Series Adventures featuring the Ninth Doctor and Rose months earlier, something of a death toll for the Past Doctor and Eighth Doctor series.

Author Andrew Cartmel is best known as the shows script editor from seasons 24 through 26 and for spearheading the "Cartmel Master Plan," which would have come to fruition in season 27, had the show not been cancelled.  This would have involved peeling away much of the Doctor's mysterious persona and revealing much of his back story.  They had barely touched the tip of the iceberg in "Silver Nemesis" by dropping hints that the Doctor harbored some deep, dark secret.  This was continued in the Virgin New Series Adventures, particularly in the final Seventh Doctor installment, Marc Platt's Lungbarrow.

The BBC Past Doctor Adventures which feature the Seventh Doctor and Ace differ quite a lot from the Virgin New Adventures not just in the way they exclude characters like Roz and Chris (if one were to be a continuity hound, all of the Past Doctor Adventures would take place before all of the Virgin New Adventures), but they feature a Doctor and Ace who are less riddled with angst than we saw in a novel like Conundrum.

Fun links:

The Doctor Who Reference Guide BEWARE: SPOILERS!
Andrew Cartmel's Wikipedia Page

Join us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter via @dwbcpodcast, or email us at dwbcpodcast@gmail.com.  You can also follow Erik on Twitter via @sjcaustenite and Sean via @tardistavern.

Episode 6, Back to the Land of Fiction!

Sean here, posting for the first time ever, so watch out for those grammatical errors!  Episode 6, in which we discuss Conundrum by Steve Lyons is now available here.  This is the second Virgin New Adventures novel we've read (after Damaged Goods) and we're learning that this series is pretty deep.  But listen as we discuss this mind-bending sequel (of sorts) to "The Mind Robber" and as Erik waxes eloquent on tropes and what not.  And I think I say some stuff, too.  (He is so going to hate me for saying that.)  Also, a special thank you to Lillibet of Professor Dave's Ark in Space for lending us her dulcet tones by reading a passage from the book for us.

What steamy summer read do we have set for July?  We're due for an BBC Eighth Doctor novel, and it's going to be Legacy of the Daleks by John Peel (ISBN: 0-563-40574-0), entry #10 in the Eighth Doctor series.  It features the return of Susan, the Daleks (duh!), and a certain other character from the television series who I shan't mention (spoilers!).  From the back cover:

England in the late 22nd century is slowly recovering from the devastation that followed the Daleks' invasion.  The Doctor's very first traveling companion -- his granddaughter, Susan -- is where he left her, helping to rebuild Earth for the survivors.  But danger still remains all around...

While searching for his lost companion, Sam, the Doctor finds himself in Domain London.  But it seems that Susan is now missing too, and his efforts to find her lead to confrontation with the ambitious Lord Haldoran, who is poised to take control of southern England through all-out war.  With the help of a sinister adviser, Haldoran's plans are already well advanced.  Power cables have been fed down a mineshaft, reactivating a mysterious old device of hideous power.  But has the Dalek presence on Earth really been wiped out?  Or are there still traps set for the unwary?

The Doctor learns to his cost once again that when dealing with the evil of the Daleks, nothing can be taken at face value...

Have you ever noticed that there are very few Dalek novels in the entire range of Doctor Who novels, from the Missing Adventures on?  As they are trademarks of the BBC, authors writing about them were legally obligated to pay a large portion of the book's proceeds to the BBC, so practically no one chose to write them.  John Peel, as a close friend to Terry Nation, elected to pick up the gauntlet and wrote both Legacy of the Daleks and War of the Daleks.  He also penned a number of Target novelizations of Dalek stories.  I also can't help but feel tickled that he wrote novels for the Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? series.  (Now good luck getting the theme song from the TV show out of your head.)

Thank you for all of your lovely comments on Twitter and iTunes, and feel free to email us at dwbcpodcast@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on Twitter via @dwbcpodcast.  Also, follow Erik via @sjcaustenite and Sean via @tardistavern.

Other fun stuff:
The Doctor Who Reprint Society
Wikipedia  BEWARE: SPOILERS!
The Doctor Who Reference Guide   BEWARE: EVEN MORE SPOILERS!
The TARDIS Library

Episode 5...Guest Starring the Silurians! Plus, What's in Store for June

Welcome back, Book Clubbers! Summer is pretty much upon us here in DC (Erik here), and nothing says summer like listening to Sean and me waffle on about about Gary Russell's Virgin Missing Adventure The Scales of Injustice. Well, you're in luck--episode 5 is here for your listening delectation. The novel features UNIT, the Third Doctor, Liz Shaw and the Silurians, and our episode is graced by another stellar reading from a guest podcaster: this time Leeson Fischer* of the most excellent Radio Rassilon podcast provides the novel with a voice. This podcast is one giant spoiler for the contents of the novel, so be forewarned.

And now, to end your suspense, I can announce that our June selection is Conundrum (ISBN: 0-426-20408-5), entry #22 from January 1994. This is a Virgin New Adventure by Steve Lyons featuring Ace and Bernice "Benny" Summerfield and a second encounter with the Land of Fiction, last seen in "The Mind Robber."* If you go here, you can read a prelude to the novel written by Lyons originally published in Doctor Who Magazine. From the back cover:

‘Doctor, we’re talking about an old man who used to dress up in a skintight white jump suit and fly around New York catching super-villains. Don’t you think there’s something just a bit unusual about that?'
 
A killer is stalking the streets of the village of Arandale. The victims are found one each day, drained of blood. And if that seems strange, it’s nothing compared to the town’s inhabitants.

The Doctor, Ace and Bernice think they’re investigating a murder mystery. But it’s all much more bizarre than that. And much more dangerous. 

Someone has interfered with the Doctor’s past again, and he’s landed in a place he knows he once destroyed. This time there can be no escape. 


I love "The Mind Robber," so I am totally, totally psyched to see what can be done with the concept of the Land of Fiction in the expanded parameters of a full-length novel. So, find a copy and read along, won't you?


*It's also the fourth book in the "Alternate Universe cycle," a continuing series of the New Adventures, but I don't think that will interfere with our enjoyment of it.

Thanks to everyone who's listening, and let us know what you think! You can send all feedback to dwbcpodcast@gmail.com, leave us a comment here, or catch us on Twitter: @dwbcpodcast, @tardistavern (Sean), or @sjcaustenite (Erik).

Direct download: Episode 5

For more info:
Our comrades at Reprint the Doctor
Wikipedia
Doctor Who Reference Guide 

*This post originally credited the wrong member of the Radio Rassilon duo for the reading. DWBC regrets the error.